Sunday, March 29, 2009

This morning I decided to go see "Monsters Vs. Aliens." I am glad I did. I was not the only lone adult in the theater (one other woman was there) among families with children.

I recognized references to the classic monsters, those from 50s scifi and even Japanese monsters. Though the children loved the 3D stuff and the animation, there was enough in there for adults to enjoy. Besides the fact that this was the first current 3D i have actuslly seen and was amazed how into the action I was.

Saturday, March 28, 2009

Today, I have author Sherry Morris stopping by to talk about her romantic suspense novel, Inappropriate.

A romantic suspense novel, Inappropriate, by Sherry Morris, is one of only eighteen romances to make the quarterfinals in the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award. Download thisFREE Amazon ShortatAMAZON.

Here's what they're saying about it:"Inappropriate is a wonderful whodunit, with one of the greatest opening lines ever-"I hate discovering dead bodies." A body washes ashore and immediately we're thrown into the protagonists internal monologue full of sex, frustration, longing, mother issues and career angst. So much kaos too little time. The next day she and a group of mystery writers leave on a writing vacation/workshop with the wife of a noted televangelist on his train going from crusade to crusade. This set up is SO good, I can't wait to see what will happen next. The writing is brilliant. Equal parts quality storytelling in a classic neurotic smart ass voice.This excerpt is brilliantly done and I've reserved a place on my shelf for the finished product."

"A mystery novel writer who gets herself in the thick of it is bound to entertain. The writing style is vivid and crisp. The character voice is strong, tough and at times down right sassy. Love to read more about the heroine here because to me she is the real star of the story. The book seems like a grown up Nancy Drew, but Nancy Drew never had such an attitude."

"Inappropriate" by Sherry Morris starts with Sandra Faire, a 23-year-old aspiring mystery writer, finding a dead body on Cocoa Beach before leaving on a vacation, a writing conference aboard a train. Her brother is a conductor and her mom tags along. The excerpt is full of humor and hints of a romance to come between Sandra and hottie Lieutenant Frank DiMattina. This was a fun excerpt to read. I think this romantic suspense novel will be an adventure on the rails, complete with murder and hilarity."

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Today, UPS dropped off a package for me. Inside the box was a bottle of white wine, some book flats and an advanced copy of Haunted Virginia: Legends, Myths and True Tales. There was a letter too, telling me in 30 days the rest of the books will be arriving at Schiffer Publishing from the printer's. The book is gorgeous and I am so excited. Catch a look at the front cover, that is Professor Cline's Haunted Monster Museum in Natural Bridge. Add to: TechnoratiDiggdel.icio.usYahooBlinkListSpurlredditFurl

Friday, March 20, 2009

If you're going to be at theVirginia Festival of the BookSaturday, March 21st, to check out the book fair 9AM to 4PM and some of the panels, too, stop by theHospitality Suite, sponsored by Virginia Romance Writers.The Hospitality Suite will be in the Madison Room of the Omni Charlottesville Hotel and open at 8:30 AM and there will be light refreshments and good conversation. It will be open until 4:30 p.m.The address of the Omni Hotel: 235 West Main Street Charlottesville, Virginia.(434)971-5500 (hotel phone Number to call for directions and help)

Today is St. Patrick's Day, when everyone who has a bit of Irish in their blood, and yes, even those who do not, but consider themselves Irish just for today, celebrate.

Interesting facts and legends:

According to legend, St. Patrick would be judge of the Irish on the day of Judgment, while for the rest of the nations on Earth, Christ judged.

St Patrick’s Day is a public holiday in Ireland. Not only there, but in Monserrat "the Emerald Isle of the Carribean.” It was settled in 1633 by Irish migrants from St Kitts.

Blue, not green, was the color associated with St. Patrick. The blue was used on Ireland's Presidential Standard or flag. The Irish Guards also wore a blue plume in their bearskins. The reason for wearing of the green is thought to be linked as a symbol from the 18th century on, of sympathy with Irish independence.

Considered patron of fishermen in the Loire, there's a legend associated with St. Patrick with a blackthorn bush. The story goes that he slept beneath it and when he awoke the next day, which was Christmas, the bush had flowered. Legend continues that it continued to do so every Christmas until its destruction during the First World War.

Until the 1970’s, all pubs were shut in Ireland on St Patrick’s Day. The sole venue to get alcohol came from the annual dog show. Lenten fasting – and the obligation to abstain from meat – were lifted on the day, which most families would begin with Mass.The first St Patrick’s Day parade took place in 1737 in Boston, followed in 1762 by New York. Also, George Washington let his soldiers have a holiday March 17, 1780. The reason being “an act of solidarity with the Irish in their fight for independence.”

Monday, March 16, 2009

Yay! I haven't done any acting, until at Farpoint, where I did a voice-over for an android in this erotic SciFi podcast, "Mistress and Princess." Yes, it is adult in nature, with sexual content, though not by me doing anything. But only if you're 18 and older are you allowed to listen to it. I'm an android for goodness sakes. But it is funny. Please do listen to it.

Friday, March 13, 2009

When I opened the package I got in the mail couple weeks ago, to my delight, I found an arc of The Warded Man by Peter V. Brett.I began to read it.

For hundreds of years, demons ruled the night, killing and devouring humans and animals. Humans lived in fear, 'warding' their homes for protection from the monsters, or using portable ones or etched wards in the dirt or in caves whenever they traveled the roads and were caught out at night from the nearest human habitation. This first book in a trilogy is the story of three young people; Arlen, Leesha, an expert healer, and Rojer, whose playing his violin charms the savage demons, keeping them at bay.

Though the story interchanges to give us each person's life from a young age toadulthood, there is no doubt right off the bat in my mind who will become the legendary Warded Man. Arlen sees his mother die from demon poisen before his eyes, thanks to a demon's mauling her as his father watched in fear from the porch of their home, not once rushing out to help her or Arlen. It took Arlen himself to save her and himself by remaining in a pig pen through a night of horror. This will change Arlen, fill him with rage at those afraid to fight back. Alone at the same time, hatred and rage at the demons will fester inside him like demon poisen. So much of this can also be seen as hidden hatred of himself, a feeling of worthlessness. Arlen will have a dream of defeating the demons, of trying to draw mankind in to join him to do so. This fills him to the point that we can see it as his one, true passion. So much does this cripple him, that he runs away from his father after his mother's last breath, leaves his apprenticeship before his time is up, and even away from marriage with a young woman who loves him.

It will lead him into a desert and an abandoned city, where he will learn something of the past of his world. He will find a way to use wards in a way that had never been used before. In the long run he will become more inhuman than the demons.

There wasn't much really to Leesha's story. Sadly, I didn't feel she had enough story in the book for me to get to know her. We do learn more of Rojer though. I actually liked him of all three characters. I felt sorry for him, for it seems that bad luck follows at his heels like a hungry dog, making him feel that everyone dies by demons because of him. He is the most believable of them.

The romance parts were a little bland to me. Maybe in the next book, Mr. Brett will embellish more in this. I hope so. And there are months and years missing with all of the characters' lives. Like for example, Leesha leaves her village to become another Herb Gatherer's apprentice in Angiers and suddenly a few chapters later she is twenty-eight years old and has been a Herb Gatherer for years.

Those facts aside, I did enjoy this book and was hooked, reading until the last page. I look forward to the next book coming out later this year.

Monday, March 09, 2009

First, before I go on to talk about Barbie's 50th birthday, I want to announce that I am the guest blogger for Novelspot all this week, starting today. My first post is up athttp://novelspot.net/node/2743. So go and leave me a comment. I will be talking about my road to publication.

Now on to Barbie. As says athttp://barbiestyle.barbie.com/, it is her 50th birthday. I remember my first Barbie, which did not twist and wore that striped bathing suit. I also remember we had to take her in to this toy store to exchange her for the next version that did twist and move.I still had the same Ken and Barbie's sister, Skipper, for years, though.Supposedly,Mattel introduced Barbie in 1959, and she became a household name. About 90 percent of American girls ages 3 to 10 owned her and she has been sold in 150 countries.What I did not know was according to author Robin Gerber, Barbie was initially inspired by "a sexually-themed gag toy for men."It was said that a woman, Ruth Handler, based the doll off this Swiss doll, Billi-Lilli, that was a curvaceous plastic bombshell originally sold as a sex toy/gag gift. Mkes you see Barbie in an all new light, doesn't it?

Though with the advent of all the electronic goodies that little girls want more now, slowing down Barbie's sales, still this doll sells at a rate of three dolls per second. Maybe faster one of those than Nascar race cars?

Anyway, I wish I had my Barbie, Ken and Skipper. Ken, I had let my son when he was two years old, play with it. Big mistake. He decided to take the doll apart. Skipper and Barbie, I am not even sure what happened to them. Now these three dolls would be worth something, especially as they were in tip top condition.

What shocked me was seeing the 1959 Barbie and the new one to be out this year, harking back to that 50s Barbie. Same striped bathing suit, except now a two-piece. I remembered the big hype on her being not a normal body type--too thin--and yet the new one looks like an anorexic model that you see on the runways these days.

Friday, March 06, 2009

1.) -Please tell us about your latest book.Serenity is my second novel about two races trying to stop a war on an alter-Earth. Melchior is a bhresya—what the humans call a demon but they aren’t—and Serenity is the human princess he plans to marry to solidify the peace between his people and hers. It’s supposed to be a political marriage but Serenity wants more than that. She wants love. Melchior knows nothing good will come of it and keeps her at arm’s length until he pushes her into danger.

Serenity is available from Samhain Publishing in both ebook and print. For more information along with buy links, excerpts and the first chapter, please visit http://dreneebagby.com/Books_Serenity.html2.) -What can we expect from you in the future?Lots and lots of my brand of madness. I’m currently working on four novels—three under D. Renee Bagby and one under my other alias Zenobia Renquist. I hope to have them all finished in the next two months (if not less) and submitted to various places that I hope will jump at the chance to publish them.3.) -How do we find out about you and your books?Visit my websites http://dreneebagby.com or http://zenobiarenquist.com there are links on both that lead to my Yahoo group, blog, Facebook, MySpace and other fun links as well.

5.) -How would you describe the genre in which you do most of your writing?I write mostly fantasy (both urban and high) and all of my books have an interracial/multicultural theme. Under my Zenobia name, I tiptoe into contemporary every now and then.6.) What motivated you to start writing?A need to keep track of the stories in my head. I would come up with stories to entertain myself whenever I got bored but after a while, I started to forget. What better way to remember than to write them down. After a while I decided to see if I could finish something for submission to a contest. I didn’t meet the sub date but I did finish. That felt great and I wanted to see if I could finish something longer that could be published.7.) -What kind of research do you do?That’s the fun thing about fantasy—no research needed. :D8.) -Do you have a set schedule for writing or do you just go with the flow?No schedule. I write when I sit in front of my computer and something shiny doesn’t distract me.9.) -Where do your ideas come from?No clue. I try to entertain myself and some of the stories stick around and demand to be given life in “print”.10.) -Who, if anyone, has influenced your writing?Jayne Ann Krentz. I love her books, both as Jayne and as Amanda Quick. Her style was a great blend of suspense and romance that always kept me coming back. The emotions of her characters were always real. I strive to achieve that with every book I write.11.) -How long have you been writing - have you always wanted to be a writer?I’ve been writing since I was twelve. I didn’t want always want to be a writer. I didn’t even like reading as a kid. In fourth grade, there was a reading competition and the kids who read X number of books got a shiny gold (fake) metal. I wanted that metal and did what I had to get it. That resulted in a love of YA romance that eventually graduated into a love of mainstream romance. A desire to see a heroine I could more identify with (color-wise) led me to start writing stories of my own.12.) -What is the most rewarding thing about being a writer?Hearing from people who loved my books. I like to know that my stories entertained someone other than myself.13.) Among your own books, have you a favorite book? Favorite hero or heroine?My current published favorite is Serenity. As soon as the four I’m working on get published, one of those four will replace it and so on as I write and release more.14.) -Please tell us about yourself (family, hobbies, education, etc.)I’m a college graduate who has been married for seven years. I have two cats, who routinely drive me nuts, and a day job I wish I could quit so I can write full time… except I know staying in the house all day every day would have me climbing the walls which is counter-productive to writing.

My hobbies include collecting things—comics, manga, books, and a few other things. I also chain maille and I’m an avid movie fanatic. I also love watching anime and studying Japanese.15.) -Are there any words of encouragement for unpublished writers?Write what you want to read. Don’t follow trends of the market because you never know when the market will change suddenly.

Also, know your characters. Know as much about your characters as you can. Talk to them if you have to. Even if the information never makes it to a book, always know everything there is to know about the people you’re writing about. If you know that information, the characters will be more believable and your story will flow more naturally.

17.) Now for something fun:

Chocolate or vanilla?Vanilla. I don’t eat chocolate because of the caffeine.

Erotic or inspirational?.I’m not much for inspirational so I guess I have to go the erotic route and skip the sex scenes.

Favorite color?Black.

Favorite paranormal beingVampires. The non-angsty kind.

Favorite mythological being?Dragons, as will become evident when one of the four books I’m working on is released.

Do you like science fiction, fantasy or horror?Fantasy. Sci-fi is a little too research intensive as fans of the genre expect techno-babble and I don’t know if I can pull off horror (though I will try) because I have no gauge of what is scary since horror movies don’t faze me.

All time favorite actor?Don’t have one. I love the movie not the actors, though an actor can ruin a movie for me.

All time favorite book?I love too many to pick though if I want to give a non-cop-out answer I would have to go with Black Lyon by Jude Deveraux. I can read that book over and over without ever getting sick of it.

Favorite TV show?Don’t have one. I’m a fan of pretty much any show with vampires or some other supernatural premise.

Favorite Movie?Ummm… Beauty and the Beast, the Disney version. There are tons of movies I love to watch over and over but that one would have to be the top of the top.

What makes you laugh out loud?Random things depending on my mood. Recently a friend sent me a bunch of attorney jokes of things actually said in the courtroom. I almost fell out of my chair laughing. I also have a sick sense of humor so watching things like Scariest Police Chases get a laugh out of me as well.

If you could go anywhere in the universe where would that be?One of my alter-Earths. Abarrane I think just because I love dragons. :)

Tuesday, March 03, 2009

Today, I have author Elysa Hendricks guest blogging on my blog for her new futuristic novel, Forbidden Moon.

FORBIDDEN MOON by Elysa Hendricks

Have you ever wondered what really happened to Atlantis?

In my second moon book, Crystal Moon I created a mythical, Atlantis type valley called Andacor, a place where peace reigned and people lived forever. When I was working on Shadow Moon I realized my fantasy world of Tareth was actually a conduit world, a place where people from different worlds, galaxies and dimensions gathered. At that point I knew that my Andacor was a piece of Atlantis that had escaped destruction on Earth by transporting to Tareth. And the premise for Forbidden Moon was born.

Can perfection exist forever? What if the world of Andacor was threatened with destruction? How far would the people of Andacor go to save their world and themselves?

With these questions in mind I got to work. Forbidden Moon is the result.

Laila DiSanti trusts no one. Betrayed by her father’s ambition and greed, she lost her family, her home, and her lover. Forced into exile in the lawless mountains surrounding Dramon, she eases her guilt by using her skill with sword and knife to hunt down outlaws and slavers and rescue the innocents they prey upon.

Pace Alastar is devoted to two things—his daughter, and the welfare of his home, the legendary hidden valley of Andacor. His world was upended when a ground quake damaged the crystals that protect Andacor and grant its citizens near immortality. Unless the crystals are restored to power, Andacor and its inhabitants will die. Only Pace’s daughter can save them, and she is lost in the outside world.

To rescue a young girl and save a world, Pace and Laila join forces in battling outlaws and the harsh mountain terrain, but can they conquer the insurmountable obstacles that mean Pace’s certain death?Excerpt:

"Kill the witch!""Burn her!"Dressed in a once white, tattered shirt and dirty water worm hide trousers, the object of the crowd’s animosity stood motionless on a dais. Tall and slim, with close-cropped hair, the woman stared over the heads of the angry mob without any outward reaction to the hatred directed toward her.Standing at the edge of the crowd, Pace Alastar reached out mentally to the woman. To open his mind amidst this turmoil was a dangerous move. Though he wasn’t a true telepath the intense thoughts of these people breached his mental shielding without difficulty. If not careful he could easily be buried beneath the negative emotions swirling around him. There was no choice. He had to know if she was the person he sought.Like the hail of stones that precede an avalanche—hatred, anger, pain and rage battered his ka. Two hundred annum of peaceful existence hadn’t prepared him for the onslaught.He pinched the bridge of his nose between thumb and forefinger. The action did little to ease the tension radiating through his body. His legs trembled. The Elders had warned him of the violent attitudes and horrific actions of which the people outside of Andacor were capable, but until now he’d found their tales difficult to accept. How he longed for the sweet peace and serenity of his home.Many annum had passed since he’d sensed such emotional intensity. In Andacor only the young suffered severe emotions. As they matured, Andacor’s protective crystals enabled them to control their response to life. Along with knowledge and wisdom, age brought an inner calm that this outside world seemed determined to destroy.Drawing on the failing power of the protective crystals hidden deep within the mountains surrounding Andacor, he fought his way through the landslide of useless emotion to reach the person on the dais.And found nothing. The woman held her thoughts and emotions behind a solid wall. Even the crowd’s physical and mental battering didn’t penetrate her shield as it had his. Where and how had a non-Andacorian learned to guard herself so well?"Kill the she-hound!""Stone her!"A rock struck her face. Like an obscene night flower, blood bloomed on her cheek. She barely flinched."Die witch!" Another rock struck her shoulder. Without a sound, she staggered back then straightened.Pain created a brief crack in her mental shield. She was the one he needed if Andacor was to survive. Laila Cathor. He’d found her. Relief surged through him. The unexpected emotion disturbed him. He shook it off. To succeed he needed to remain dispassionate.The angry grumbles of the crowd grew. Though a few guards at the foot of the stairs struggled to restrain them, soon the mob’s rage would propel them forward and the woman would die.Whatever her crimes against these people, he couldn’t allow that to happen. He needed her help. Andacor needed her. Without her, the last capable Crystal Singer—his daughter—would never be found and Andacor would be doomed.What he did next was more dangerous than lowering his mental shielding. He stepped into the crowd and used his power of dominion to delve deep into their minds.Chaos assaulted him. Tendrils of fear tightened around him. He staggered and, for a moment, his resolve wavered. Then, knowing that no matter the cost he couldn’t afford to fail in his duty, he gathered his determination and forged ahead. Success or death were his only options.Once he formed a connection with the people, he used his dominion to summon tranquility and forgiveness from within them. Their bewildered eyes followed him as he walked through the crowd.Laila watched the stranger. A head taller than those around him, and clothed in clean, elegant but oddly styled garments, the man would have stood out among this rabble even if he wasn’t breathtakingly beautiful—a glowing being of white and gold moving through a sea of dirty miscreants.Hair the same color of sun-drenched wheat as Aubin’s, her dead lover’s had been flowed unbound over his broad shoulders. A gust of wind blew a thick strand across high, sculpted cheekbones. He brushed it aside with strong yet lean fingers. His stride didn’t waver. He gazed at her with eyes the blue-green of a mountain lake, eyes that saw much, yet revealed little.He moved with an unconscious grace that spoke of certainty in his abilities. The air of serenity surrounding him, the same air that had drawn her to Aubin, stirred something inside Laila she’d believed long dead—hope.Numb from days locked away in a lightless, nearly airless cell without food or water, she’d resigned herself to dying when the mob had dragged her out into the light. But she’d vowed her death at their hands would cost them dearly.Without the distraction this man’s appearance caused, the mob would have soon released her from her never-ending nightmare of living. She didn’t welcome the possibility of survival. If not for her son Sorel and her responsibility to others whose lives yet held meaning and hope, she would embrace death’s inevitability.One by one the men and women in the crowd fell quiet and moved aside as the man passed. An elderly woman dropped to her knees at his feet, clutched the hem of his travel cloak, and looked up at him with imploring eyes. "Oh, pure one, forgive me my wrongs and lead me back into the Eternal One’s grace."Though the man gently raised the old woman to her feet and murmured a blessing without pause, Laila sensed his discomfort in the role these stupid, superstitious people cast him in. But it obviously suited his purpose, whatever it might be, to humor them.As he moved toward Laila, he murmured too softly for her to hear his words, but his effect upon the people was obvious. With each step he took closer to the dais the mood in the town square shifted. Laila didn’t claim to have any empathic feelings like her half-sister Sianna, but she felt the anger, fear, and hatred draining from the crowd.She stared at the figure in white. His step faltered and he looked up at her. Their gazes met and held. The world around them seemed to slow and fade away. All she could see was him—a vision of white and gold, a haven that offered peace, comfort and something else she couldn’t identify. Part of her wanted to succumb to the temptation of his promise. Her emotions softened under the stranger’s odd influence. The tension in her shoulders eased. Pain disappeared. She swayed.Reality intruded. A rough hand gripped her arm and yanked her up against a hard male body. She jolted in disgust.Summoning the angry guilt that sustained her, she glared at the stranger. No freak of nature would determine how she felt. The connection between them broke.Sorrow at the loss of the connection speared through her. He turned back to the people.She almost welcomed the pain of the guard’s hand finding and squeezing her breast. What the white-robed stranger offered was a chimera, an unrealistic distraction from the process of survival. With nimble fingers she palmed the dagger from the guard’s belt.As if mesmerized by the stranger’s presence, the crowd parted and dropped to their knees. Even the guard on the dais forgot his duty. He released her, moved to the edge of the dais, and bowed his head.What unholy power did this stranger wield?No matter. She used the diversion he provided to ease backwards until her heels hung over the back edge of the dais. No one noticed as she made the waist high drop. Without the use of her arms for balance, the jump tore open the wound on her inner thigh. Pain shot through her groin and blood trickled thick and hot down her leg to pool in her boot. Sucking in her breath, she ignored the discomfort and crouched. In one smooth motion, she pulled her arms under her legs so her bound wrists were in front of her and used the knife to slice away the rope. In a heartbeat she vanished into the town’s shadowed alleyways.The sudden angry roar of the crowd told her they realized she had escaped. It stirred her guilt, but it didn’t stop her from slipping out of town. The stranger had chosen to interfere in her life. His fate wasn’t her responsibility. Still, she paused at the edge of the forest, straining to hear.The echoes of shouting reached her ears, but she couldn’t make out the words. Had the crowd turned on him? Grabbed him and pulled him down with dirty, hurtful hands? Torn his white robes and bloodied his smooth skin?She owed him naught. He’d given her nothing she wanted. Life was a curse not a gift. She took a step. But what of those she was sworn to protect? By saving her he saved them. For that she did owe him.Besides these dung eaters had stolen her weapons, her crystal sword, Justice, and her daggers. Before she left she would have them back.Laila Cathor refused to let anyone steal from her or to own her gratitude.

About Me

Pamela K. Kinney is a published author of horror, science fiction, fantasy, poetry, and nonfiction ghost books published by Schiffer Publishing. Her latest fiction includes short horror stories, "Donating" in Inhuman Magazine, Issue 5 December 2011 and "Bottled Spirits" (a Predator and Editor 2012 winner and a 2013 WSFA Small Press Award runner up), “Azathoth is Here" reprinted by Innsmouth Press in Innsmouth Magazine: Collected Issues 1-4 in Kindle and ePub formats, short dark fantasy, “Devil in the Details,” included in Harboring Secrets anthology and short horror story, “Let Demon Dogs Lie” released in Southern Haunt: Devils in the Darkness anthology March 2014, and coming soon, a fantasy short story, “Weregoat” in Strangely Funny II anthology. And of course, she has her horror and dark fantasy tales collection in print and download, Spectre Nightmares and Visitations, published by Under the Moon.
She also has done acting on stage and in films, is a Master Costumer, costuming since 1972, and she even does paranormal investigating, including for DVDs for Paranormal World Seekers, filmed by AVA Productions.